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Is the Employment tide turning for Merseyside?

The Merseyside is area is one that has been blighted with high Unemployment levels for the past three decades.

Constantly left behind the curve when it comes to urban redevelopment and sorely lacking in the financial support that the ares so deserves, the city and surrounding county may finally be seeing a shift in the balance of things.

As recently as November, the National Housing Federation issued a statement based on their ‘Home Truths’ Report – a document detailing the true cost of home ownership within the United Kingdom and it’s various regions. Within this report were also statistics pertaining to the numbers of those living unemployed in the Merseyside area and the affect that this has on those looking to buy a home in the future.

Although the national unemployment rate (when considering those of working age) is around 6.2% this number is much higher when considering Merseyside alone. As of November, Merseyside’s unemployment rate is considerably higher than the national average at 10% (in Liverpool itself, this number was an even higher 12%). This is something that might well be set to change as it’s emerged this year that Liverpool is now one of the top cities in the UK to find a job.

Increased investment from established companies, as well as a growing number of new start-ups and a burgeoning restaurant scene, has led to Liverpool being named the number one city in the UK to find a job in.

The amount of vacancies that can be found in the city has reported to have risen by as much as 23% over the New Year with jobs in industries such as Healthcare, Hospitality in addition to 140 new roles as Constables for the Merseyside Police.

This sharp rise in business opportunities in Merseyside area has put it head and shoulders above other major cities in the UK. In London, vacancies rose by 19% and in Southampton and 18% rise was seen in job opportunities.

Of course, an increase in job vacancies will always lead to an increase in applications, as graduates and those entering the job market for the first time rush to get their feet in the door. Applications have risen in line with vacancies by 24% compared to this time last year.

What does this mean for the South Sefton area then?

An increase in job vacancies in the Merseyside area can only be seen as a good thing. Although we might not be able to see a dramatic increase in our day-to-day lives immediately, it’s certainly good to hear some positive news about increasing prosperity in our area. The more people that invest in our local economy, the more we’ll be able to see unemployment levels drop.

With the increase of vacancies across the Merseyside area a rising interest in apprenticeship schemes has also been seen, as would-be students aim to avoid sky-rocketing tuition fees in favour of learning a vocation that allows them to earn money straight off the bat.

Although it might be hard to discern initially, the tides of prosperity are shifting in Merseyside.

In a few years, perhaps, we can start to properly compete with the rest of the country as we can hope to see our local unemployment rate drop in line with the rest of the country.